Mal the Tank Engine makes comeback as PM goes on railroad romp

Malcolm Turnbull received a huge reception from Indians when he hung out with Narendra Modi. Melbourne’s Herald Sun, yesterday:

The two PMs took a metro train for three stops along Delhi’s Blue Line … In amazing scenes of enthusiasm that Australian politicians can only dream of, at each stop on the line crowds cheered and chanted support for Mr Modi.

Memories, like the corners of Mal’s mind. Misty water-coloured memories of the way he was. Herald Sun, September 24, 2015:

Mr Turnbull accepted an invitation from the Herald Sun to jump on the City Circle tourist tram, and was greeted with a spontaneous round of applause and calls of “Congratulations, Prime Minister’’ when he hauled himself aboard.

Things got rough for Malcolm ­really, really fast. Nine News’ political reporter Charles Croucher on Twitter, January 28 last year:

Prime Minister waiting for a tram. No one around seems to care …

Maybe the Prime Minister could recapture his former glory with a fast train ­between Canberra and Sydney? Canberra Times, yesterday:

Executives from Spanish train-­building company Talgo arrived in Canberra on Wednesday to discuss running their high speed passenger trains between the two cities.

If Mal actually lays just one train track for fast rail, every living former PM will hate his guts … Australian parliament website, Australian Very Fast Trains — A Chronology, 1998:

June 1984 — The Chairman of the CSIRO, Dr Paul Wild, and colleagues Dr John Brotchie and Dr John Nicholson propose a high speed rail link between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne.

Barnaby Joyce states the obvious. ABC’s RN Breakfast, yesterday:

The reason houses are dear here is because so many people want to buy them.

But Scott Morrison has a crafty plan. Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph, yesterday:

The Daily Telegraph has confirmed Mr Morrison had been exploring the case for changes to negative gearing …

The negative gearing changes he railed against? The Treasurer at the ­National Press Club, February 17 last year:

I think it will actually increase the ­inequity in the system, not alleviate it.

Barnaby says “Boooooooooo”. RN Breakfast, continued:

You have to be really careful because if you start coming up with great ideas about how you are going to reduce the price of houses …

The rest of cabinet booed too. The Daily Telegraph, continued:

Mr Dutton and Mr Cormann are understood to have fiercely opposed the move.

And it’s gone. Morrison, the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute in Melbourne, Monday:

Disrupting negative gearing would not come without a cost …

He also quoted respected economist Saul Eslake in the speech, Monday:

Saul Eslake’s recent report to superannuation trustees noted …

ScoMo probably hoped Saul would back his plan to allow first-home buyers to dip into their super … Yeah, nah. Eslake on Ticky, Sky News, Monday:

It’s a good thing that it’s (the superannuation proposal) off the table …